{"id":2012,"date":"2025-08-07T11:24:15","date_gmt":"2025-08-07T15:24:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/?page_id=2012"},"modified":"2026-01-15T16:18:47","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T21:18:47","slug":"nrrac","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/restoration\/nrrac\/","title":{"rendered":"Natural Resource Restoration Advisory Council"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Administrative Order No. 2023-08<\/a>, issued by Shawn M. LaTourette, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), on March 14, 2023, outlines the state\u2019s natural resource restoration policy and the NJDEP\u2019s responsibilities in protecting and restoring natural resources in New Jersey. A key component of this order is the establishment of the Natural Resource Restoration Advisory Council (NRRAC), designed for the limited and express purpose of providing insight and feedback concerning the Department\u2019s identification, planning, and implementation of restoration projects, and to assist the Department in communicating restoration project objectives and outcomes to the public.<\/p>\n

The NRRAC\u2019s work and recommendations are strictly advisory, the Commissioner retains full discretion of the selection and implementation of restoration projects, pursuant to the Natural Resource Damages Constitutional Amendment<\/a>. The NRRAC does not participate in settlement discussions, nor are they privy to any settlement discussion information between the Department and any responsible parties.\u00a0 Once a settlement is reached, they may advise on project implementation.<\/p>\n

NRRAC issued their first annual report<\/a> in January 2026.<\/p>\n

NRRAC\u2019s Role<\/strong><\/p>\n

Administrative Order No. 2023-08<\/a> established the following primary functions of the NRRAC to support and promote the goals of the Trustee:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Develop and present recommendations for establishing a publicly accessible and interactive mechanism through which the Department would identify and catalogue potential restoration project opportunities;<\/li>\n
  2. Develop and present recommended principles and priorities that could be considered by the Department in the process of identifying, planning, and implementing restoration projects;<\/li>\n
  3. Produce an annual report to the Commissioner that identifies potential restoration project opportunities statewide, a draft of which the Chair may determine to be an appropriate subject for a public engagement session conducted by the NRRAC; and,<\/li>\n
  4. Provide recommendations to the Department to inform and support public engagement and communications concerning pending or proposed restoration projects.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    NRRAC Appointments<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The NRRAC consists of 10 members, including two permanent members from the Department: The Assistant Commissioner for Community Investment and Economic Revitalization (CIER), who will serve as the Chair, and a representative from the Office of Natural Resource Restoration (ONRR), appointed by the Chair. The Commissioner appointed eight non-Department members on January 31, 2025, currently these members are serving a two-year term and represent the following sectors:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • A representative of a statewide organization dedicated to the conservation, restoration or preservation of land or other natural resources;<\/li>\n
    • Two representatives of a statewide environmental justice organization;<\/li>\n
    • A representative of a regulated entity routinely engaged in the remediation or restoration of injured natural resources, or a business or trade organization representative of such regulated entities;<\/li>\n
    • A representative of an academic institution or research organization whose work is dedicated, at least in part, to the study or improvement of natural resources;<\/li>\n
    • A representative of a local government unit whose work is dedicated, at least in part, to environmental concerns or stewardship of public lands or resources, or an organization representative of such local government units; and<\/li>\n
    • Two public members<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Nomination Solicitation<\/strong><\/p>\n

      All members of the Council have been appointed.\u00a0 If you would like to nominate yourself, or someone else for future consideration, please apply here:[\/vc_column_text][vc_btn title=”Apply Now” color=”sky” size=”lg” css=”” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fdeptest.nj.gov%2Fnrr%2Fnatural-resource-restoration-advisory-council-nominations%2F”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      [vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Administrative Order No. 2023-08, issued by Shawn M. LaTourette, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), on March 14, 2023, outlines the state\u2019s natural resource restoration policy and the NJDEP\u2019s responsibilities in protecting and restoring natural resources in New Jersey. A key component of this order is the establishment of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":113,"featured_media":0,"parent":112,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"fullwidth-title.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2012","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/113"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2012"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2012\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2530,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2012\/revisions\/2530"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/deptest.nj.gov\/nrr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}